Ensuring a new law works

A recent conference organised by RSPCA International provided a welcome opportunity for NGOs and government representatives to discuss issues related to animal welfare and protection, but many lobbyists are still concerned that the impending legislative changes are shrouded in secrecy.

Michael Pearson, a spokesman for World Animal Conscience, said that the conference had provided a good forum for the animal welfare groups to come together, especially since there had been criticism that there was disunity among them. But if the NGOs had been hoping to hear details about the impending legislation, they were disappointed.

"The feedback we had was that while the government spokespeople were quite forthcoming on a one-to-one basis during the breaks, the content of their actual speeches did not provide us with much detail," he said. "For example, the minister told us that the legislation was being processed, but he only spoke very broadly. We had hoped to get some details of what the government might have in the pipeline."

Mr Pearson added that in the same way, although the veterinary department spokesperson mentioned the authorities plan to introduce a micro-chipping programme, the information given was very sparse.

"In fact, when further details then emerged in the press, there were many aspects of the programme that we felt could be improved, so it was a shame we weren’t able to use the conference as a forum to discuss things," he said.

Mr Pearson said that the NGOs were now also concerned about how the legislation might be introduced.

"It appears that there will be an enabling act with a framework, while many parts of the law will then be introduced by means of a series of legal notices," he said. "This concerns us on a number of levels. Firstly, we are sceptical about whether there will be the national debate that the subject merits and secondly, if the legislation is introduced via notices in the Government Gazette, we would want to ensure it gets the profile it deserves, both from a point of view of education and enforcement."

On the positive side, Mr Pearson believes the new law marks an important step forward for Malta in that there will be, for the first time, legislation specifically focused and written on animal rights.

He also added that he welcomed the setting up of a council of animal affairs – a body to advise the minister on aspects of animal welfare – which will be created in line with the new laws.

"We are pleased that the authorities have now decided to give the NGOs two representatives on the council instead of one, as was originally offered," he said. "Our feeling was that since the NGOs were the only spokespeople who were likely to have animal welfare as their prime, or even sole motivation, they should have more than one seat on the council. We felt we needed a stronger voice to balance the representation from the business and commercial sectors."

As yet, since no details of the legislation have been made public, the NGOs have no idea whether their submissions, which have been numerous, have been taken on board.

Mr Pearson believes that it is most important for the new law to ensure penalties are severe enough to act as a deterrent, so that perpetrators will take them seriously.

"Of course, alongside proper punishment, such as hefty fines and even imprisonment, we also need to make sure that the laws are then enforced," he added.

He stressed that many NGOs are doing a very good job of educating the public and raising awareness on animal welfare issues.

"But this has to go hand in hand with enforcement, and that is not down to us, it is the responsibility of the authorities," he explained.

This is one example, Mr Pearson added, of the way in which legislative changes need to have the financial backing to make them effective.

"The government may very well have to throw better funding at the legislation for it to work, or else it risks remaining just that – a law on paper," he said. "Enforcement will not be effective if the human resources are not there and the problem of strays will not be solved without a comprehensive neutering programme. But the SPCA cannot carry out a programme like that without much more funding."

Mr Pearson also believes that the government should be subsidising the micro-chipping programme, to encourage owners to comply, and is disappointed that it is being brought in on a voluntary basis.

"The only people who will volunteer to take up the system will be the responsible pet owners and those with valuable pets," he said. "These owners by their very nature are not the ones who cause or contribute to the stray animal population. The irresponsible owners, who do cause the problems, will not use the system."

Mr Pearson added that he hoped the new legislation would cover some aspects of animal cruelty that WAC feels strongly about, such as animals in entertainment, the selling and keeping of exotic pets and issues related to farming.

He also voiced his hope that with new laws on the horizon, there would be a change of mentality away from the them and us philosophy, which would see the authorities working closer with NGOs to ensure changes to the legislation are upheld.

"Everyone needs to pull the same rope on this issue and we would be more than willing to work with the authorities in this regard, even investigating cases if a financial provision was made to finance our inspectors," he said. "After all, I believe that both the authorities and NGOs would have a common goal once the new law is in place – that it is introduced and upheld."